Genesis 42:8

Genesis 42:8 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And Joseph knew his brethren, but they knew not him.
• New International Version (NIV)Although Joseph recognized his brothers, they did not recognize him.
• English Standard Version (ESV)And Joseph recognized his brothers, but they did not recognize him.
• New King James Version (NKJV)So Joseph recognized his brothers, but they did not recognize him.

Context of Genesis 42:8

6Now Joseph was the ruler of the country, the one who sold grain to all the people of the country. Joseph’s brothers came and bowed down before him with their faces to the ground. 7When Joseph saw his brothers, he recognized them, but he pretended to be a stranger to them and spoke to them harshly. He asked, “Where do you come from?” They answered, “From the land of Canaan, to buy grain for food.” Joseph recognized his brothers, but they did not recognize him. 9Then Joseph remembered the dreams he had dreamed about them, and he said to them, “You are spies; you have come to see if our land is vulnerable!” 10But they exclaimed, “No, my lord! Your servants have come to buy grain for food!

Genesis 42:8 word by word

וַיַּכֵּ֥ר יוֹסֵ֖ף אֶת־אֶחָ֑יו וְהֵ֖ם לֹ֥א הִכִּרֻֽהוּ׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And Josephיוֹסֵףyôsêph · JosephH3130
• knewנָכַרnâkar · to recognizeH5234
• his brethrenאָח'âch · brother: male-siblingH251

Cross-references for Genesis 42:8

• Luke 24:16(but their eyes were kept from recognizing him).
• John 20:14When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus.
• John 21:4When it was already very early morning, Jesus stood on the beach, but the disciples did not know that it was Jesus.

Commentaries on Genesis 42:8

• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1-38Verses 1-38 - Joseph and Ten of His Brethren 1. שׁבר sheber “fragment, crumb, hence, grain.” בר bar “pure,” “winnowed,” hence, “corn” (grain). 6. שׁליט shallı̂yṭ “ruler, governor, hence,” Sultan. Not elsewhere found in the Pentateuch. 25. כלי kelı̂y “vessel,” here any portable article in which grain may be conveyed. שׂק śaq “sack,” the very word which remains in our language to this day. אמתחת 'amtachath “bag.” Twenty years, the period of Joseph‘s long…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 7-20Verses 7-20 Joseph was hard upon his brethren, not from a spirit of revenge, but to bring them to repentance. Not seeing his brother Benjamin, he suspected that they had made away with him, and he gave them occasion to speak of their father and brother. God, in his providence, sometimes seems harsh with those he loves, and speaks roughly to those for whom yet he has great mercy in store. Joseph settled at last, that one of them should be left, and the…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 8they did not recognize him: This was because Joseph was now a grown man, not a boy. He did not have a beard, wore Egyptian clothes, and was in an unexpected position of power. He spoke to them through an interpreter (42:23).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 7-87-8. Joseph saw his brethren, and he knew them, ... but they knew not him--This is not strange. They were full-grown men--he was but a lad at parting. They were in their usual garb--he was in his official robes. They never dreamt of him as governor of Egypt, while he had been expecting them. They had but one face; he had ten persons to judge by. made himself strange unto them, and spake roughly--It would be an injustice to Joseph's character to suppose…Read the comment

Topics related to Genesis 42:8

• Commerce
• Dissembling

In the dictionaries

• Bereave
• Espy
• Famine
• Fear
• Joseph
• Lade
• Lord
• Nakedness
• Sack
• Traffick

Commentaries on Genesis 42

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings